Battle of Ceresole

The Battle of Ceresole (11 April 1544) was a battle of the Italian War of 1542-1546, in which the French army led by Francis, Count of Enghien defeated an Imperial-Spanish army southeast of Turin in northern Italy. The French inflicted heavy losses on the Spanish-Imperial forces, but they failed to take advantage of their victory.

After the Ottomans and French conquered Nice, Imperial-Spanish forces moved from Lombardy to Savoy, with Alfonso d'Avalos leading an army of 18,000 infantry and 1,000 cavalry towards Turin. The Count of Enghien's French army of 13,000 infantry and 1,850 cavalry defended the Piedmont region, and the two sides met in battle at Ceresole. The battle began with arquebus and artillery skirmishes, and d'Avalos ordered a general advance. The Imperial landsknechts clashed with the French and Swiss infantry, with both sides suffering heavy losses. After the Imperial troops in the center were defeated, the Imperial forces on the flanks also withdrew, and the French eventually overwhelmed the last Spanish and German troops after a series of ineffectual and costly charges. The French inflicted substantial losses on the Habsburg forces, but they failed to exploit their victory by taking Milan.